#NATO support to #Turkey : background and timeline #Patriot

NATO support to Turkey : Background and timeline The Turkish Government has requested that NATO augment Turkey’s air defence capabilities to defend the population and territory of Turkey. On 4 December 2012, NATO Foreign Ministers agreed to this request. The decision follows discussions held by the Alliance under Article 4 of the NATO Treaty which allows any Ally to call for consultations if the security of any of them is threatened. The discussions were largely prompted by two incidents earlier in 2012, namely the shooting down of a Turkish jet by Syrian forces in June and the killing of five Turkish civilians in Turkey by Syrian shelling in October. This is not the first time that NATO has provided such visible support to Turkey. Similar transfer of Patriot missile batteries were made to the country in both 1991 and 2003. Three NATO Allies have agreed to provide two Patr...